Computational investigation of smoke management performance in a large enclosed sports using fire dynamics simulator: a comparative assessment of natural and mechanical ventilation strategies

Smoke management is essential for maintaining tenable conditions during fire emergencies in large enclosed arenas. Although Computational Fluid Dynamics has been widely applied to investigate smoke movement, the combined effects of complex roof geometry, mechanical ventilation capacity, and occupant tenability in sports arenas remain insufficiently explored. This study numerically evaluates smoke management in the Galatsi Olympic Hall using the Fire Dynamics Simulator, with the numerical model validated against published large-scale fire experiments. Four design fire scenarios (5, 10, 15, and 20 MW) were simulated over a 600-s period to compare natural ventilation with mechanical smoke extraction operating between 4 and 10 air changes per hour (ACH). Smoke-layer height, gas temperature, visibility, and carbon monoxide concentration were evaluated against established tenability criteria (NFPA 92B, SFPE Handbook, and NFPA 130). The results show that natural ventilation was unable to maintain tenable conditions under the most severe fire scenario, whereas mechanical smoke extraction significantly improved smoke-control performance. Under the investigated conditions, extraction rates of 8–10 ACH provided the most favorable overall performance among the investigated cases. These findings provide engineering guidance for the performance-based design of smoke management systems in large enclosed sports arenas with similar geometric characteristics. These configuration-specific findings provide engineering guidance for the performance-based design of smoke management systems in large enclosed sports arenas with similar geometric characteristics.